The former superintendent of the Maryland State Police has defended the covert surveillance of protest groups that took place during his tenure, describing the operation as a legitimate way to find out information.

"It is not about spying; it is not about terrorism," Col. Tim Hutchins, who served as the head of the state police from December 2003 to June 2007, told the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee yesterday. "There is no requirement for a police officer to announce who they are ahead of time, whether they are making a drug buy or attending a public meeting."



The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland released documents this summer that uncovered a covert operation among meetings of regional protest groups during 2005 and 2006. Last week, a report by former Maryland Attorney General Stephen H. Sachs criticized the "overreaching" of the state police by continuing a covert operation when there was no evidence of criminal conduct.

A total of 53 people were also mistakenly classified as terrorists in police databases, current state police superintendent Col. Terrence Sheridan told the committee yesterday. Those people in the database will be contacted and their information will be deleted from the system, he said.

Col. Hutchins said he never told former Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., who was governor during the surveillance, or Mr. O'Malley about the "low-level operation."

The situation seems emblematic of the mindset following the 9/11 attacks, said Sen. Jim Brochin, D-Baltimore, that "if we think that there, one day, may be the possibility (of breaking the law) ... we have the right to infiltrate."

But Col. Hutchins said it is not always clear otherwise peaceful protest groups will be civil "when fringe people try to tag onto legitimate advocacy groups."

Both Col. Hutchins and Col. Sheridan said they have not found any evidence of similar surveillance operations. Although the Sachs report found the state police checked into more protest groups, it concluded no other actions were as extensive.

Networks of federal, state and local law-enforcement agencies share information and could have spread the surveillance reports, said Michael German, a former FBI agent and policy counsel to the ACLU.

"It is difficult to know if this bad information can ever be purged," he said. "This is why it is so important for the police to get it right on the front end."

Activists observed in the state police operation sent a letter to Mr. O'Malley yesterday urging for a more thorough investigation with subpoena power.

For the moment, Mr. O'Malley said he is confident in the content of the Sachs report, but will pay attention to how the General Assembly responds.

"We'll see what their judgment is," he said. "I'm not at this time aware of facts that would warrant or call for a deeper, broader, longer investigation."

Sen. Brian Frosh, D-Montgomery, the chairman of the Senate committee, said he is about "100 percent certain" legislation will be introduced on the topic.

"It is very clear the state police overstepped their bounds," he said. "It is very clear there are victims."